Sugar sweetened beverages- including sodas, sports drinks, energy drinks, artificial juice, chocolate milk, tea, smoothies, etc.- can be harmful to your child and can lead to weight gain or obesity. Additionally, the large amount of added sugar can cause physical and behavioral ramifications.

The average soda contains 50-60 grams of sugar! This is as much as two normal sized candy bars. Drinking just one 20oz soda a day can add on an extra 250 calories. Over the course of a year, this results in weight gain of over 25 lbs! When you drink your calories, your body doesn’t register those calories as energy consumed. If you were to eat those 250 calories, you would become less hungry and not consume as much throughout the day. Drinking your calories is simply unnecessary and packs on the pounds.

Sugar-sweetened beverages, like soda, can lead to childhood obesity and behavioral problems.

Besides gaining weight, the high amounts of sugar, and sometimes caffeine, in these drinks also leads to behavioral problems such as hyperactivity, trouble focusing, sleeplessness, irritability, and sugar crashes. It can also affect your child’s eating habits overall. When your child’s taste buds grow used to consuming extremely sweet beverages, other things taste less sweet, and your child becomes less likely to eat foods with nutrients, such as fruits and vegetables. The more sugar your child gets, the more they will want! Soda addiction is real, so try to avoid encouraging the bad habit early on to avoid the possibility of childhood obesity.

Not only does consumption of sugar sweetened beverages affect your child’s behavior, it also can negatively impact their health. Lack of sleep from the sugar and caffeine can leave your child lethargic and low on energy. Other ramifications include increased risk for diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity.

Camp Shane weight loss camp for children knows that water is truly the only drink your child needs (with the exception of milk, which is a good source of calcium). If you don’t buy sodas your children are less likely to drink their calories! A soda every once in a while is fine, but try to limit it as much as possible.

Sugar sweetened beverages- including sodas, sports drinks, energy drinks, artificial juice, chocolate milk, tea, smoothies, etc.- can be harmful to your child and can lead to weight gain or obesity. Additionally, the large amount of added sugar can cause physical and behavioral ramifications.

The average soda contains 50-60 grams of sugar! This is as much as two normal sized candy bars. Drinking just one 20oz soda a day can add on an extra 250 calories. Over the course of a year, this results in weight gain of over 25 lbs! When you drink your calories, your body doesn’t register those calories as energy consumed. If you were to eat those 250 calories, you would become less hungry and not consume as much throughout the day. Drinking your calories is simply unnecessary and packs on the pounds.

Besides gaining weight, the high amounts of sugar, and sometimes caffeine, in these drinks also leads to behavioral problems such as hyperactivity, trouble focusing, sleeplessness, irritability, and sugar crashes. It can also affect your child’s eating habits overall. When your child’s taste buds grow used to consuming extremely sweet beverages, other things taste less sweet, and your child becomes less likely to eat foods with nutrients, such as fruits and vegetables. The more sugar your child gets, the more they will want! Soda addiction is real, so try to avoid encouraging the bad habit early on.

Not only does consumption of sugar sweetened beverages affect your child’s behavior, it also can negatively impact their health. Lack of sleep from the sugar and caffeine can leave your child lethargic and low on energy. Other ramifications include increased risk for diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity.

Camp Shane weight loss camp for children knows that water is truly the only drink your child needs (with the exception of milk, which is a good source of calcium). If you don’t buy sodas your children are less likely to drink their calories! A soda every once in a while is fine, but try to limit it as much as possible.

Written by Camp Shane Nutritionist, Amanda Yazbek